Citizens for the Protection of Logan Canyon (CPLC) was formed in the 1970s in response to the environmental issues raised by the repairs and reconstruction of U.S. Highway 89 through Logan Canyon. This informal group offered citizens an opportunity to voice their concerns without having to align themselves with an established environmental group. They remained involved through the 1980s, contesting the U.S. Forest Service's plan to interpret the aquatic and visual resources of the canyon and debating the definition of the highway's 1989 designation as a National Scenic Byway.

During the 1990s, another group emerged to contest a new set of proposed improvements to the road. Known as the Logan Canyon Coalition (LCC), they wanted additional compromises from the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) beyond those the CPLC was seeking. Their position was to pursue an alternative course of action while continuing to cooperate with the CPLC. In 1995 the LCC, along with the Utah Rivers Conservation Council, submitted an appeal to the UDOT's proposed actions. The ensuing compromise resulted in the abandonment of several of the more intrusive planned modifications.

In 1998 the LCC began an effort to have the federal government designate the Logan River as a Wild and Scenic River under a 1968 legislative act by the same name. This law was intended to identify rivers that "possess outstandingly remarkable scenic, recreational, geologic, fish and wildlife, historic, cultural, or other similar values" which "shall be preserved in free-flowing condition, and... their immediate environments shall be protected for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations." Their push was ultimately unsuccessful, and as of 2011, the Logan River had not earned the designation that they sought.